Elements of a Successful Picture Book Defined

Even though picture books don’t have a lot of words, and the structure may seem simple, it surprisingly is not. There’s a lot more structure to a picture book than it appears. A successful picture book where the character has a problem should have these key elements or beats: a defined problem that the character has to solve, the rule of three tries and fails, character and emotional growth, a surprising and satisfying ending.

Using examples from a sample writing, Tracy’s post explains these beats in more detail.

Below is the link to a post written by Tracy Marchini, agent and author, on picture book structure.

https://tracymarchini.com/publishing-thoughts-and-writing-advice/try-three-times-and-fail-a-quick-breakdown-of-traditional-pict

Note: Not all picture books are character driven problem books, some are lists, or mood books, or inspirational, or humorous while others are concept books.